Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao on Wednesday announced that the Telangana Rashtra Samithi has now been renamed as the Bharat Rashtra Samithi, ANI reported.

A resolution to rename the party was passed in its general body meeting. Shortly after the announcement, party workers were seen celebrating the decision.

Rao launched the party at a conclave of Telangana Rashtra Samithi ministers, members of Parliament, state legislators and district-level co-ordinators.

On Sunday, Rao held a meeting with his Cabinet colleagues and the party’s district presidents, during which they discussed a roadmap for the national party, according to NDTV.

Former MP B Vinod Kumar said that the party will contest elections in states apart from Telangana, The Indian Express reported.

Senior Janata Dal (Secular) leader and former Chief Minister of Karnataka HD Kumaraswamy along with 20 party MLAs were also present at Telangana Bhavan when Rao launched the party, reported PTI.

In recent months, Rao has frequently criticised the Centre over its policies and called for a change at the national level. He has also spoken to other Opposition parties such as Pinarayi Vijayan, Arvind Kejriwal, Nitish Kumar and Uddhav Thackeray in a bid to unite them to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party.

In July, he had described Narendra Modi as the “weakest and inefficient” prime minister ever in the country and said that there was a need for a “double-engine non-BJP government” at the Centre.

Rao had then on September 11 announced that he would launch the national party soon.

“There has been a consensus on the alternative national agenda after prolonged discussions with intellectuals, economists and experts from various fields like we did before the start of the Telangana movement,” a press release from his office said at the time.

KCR’s move a misadventure: BJP

Opposition parties in Telangana, however, raised questions about Rao’s move to change the name of the party.

Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson K Krishna Sagar Rao said that Rao’s national political entry plan is a “misadventure”, PTI reported.

“I strongly believe KCR’s initiative will be self-sabotage,” Rao said. “Change of the name from TRS to BRS will lead to losing his home turf, while he embarks on a wasteful national ambition.”

Meanwhile, Congress Telangana President Revanth Reddy alleged that Rao has killed the existence of Telangana with the renaming.